The Long Road To War: Unraveling The Decision To Enter Afghanistan

The war in Afghanistan was started by President George W. Bush in 2001, in response to the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States. Bush demanded that the Taliban stop harbouring members of al-Qaeda and warned that the Global War on Terror would not end until terrorism was eradicated. The US military officially launched Operation Enduring Freedom on October 7, 2001, with support from the United Kingdom. The war's early phase involved airstrikes on al-Qaeda and Taliban targets, but by November, 1,300 American troops were in the country.

Since then, four US presidents have presided over the war in Afghanistan. Bush was followed by Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden, who ended the war in 2021.

The US war in Afghanistan was the country's longest war

The conflict was the direct response to the September 11 attacks, and it was the longest war in US military history, surpassing the length of the Vietnam War by approximately six months.

The US-led coalition drove the Taliban from power and built military bases near major cities across the country. However, most Al-Qaeda and Taliban members were not captured, escaping to neighbouring Pakistan or retreating to rural or remote mountainous regions.

The US-led coalition remained in Afghanistan, forming a security mission (ISAF) sanctioned by the United Nations, with the goal of creating a new democratic authority in the country that would prevent the Taliban from returning to power. A new Afghan Interim Administration was established, and international rebuilding efforts were launched.

However, by 2003, the Taliban had reorganised under their founder, Mullah Omar, and began a widespread insurgency against the new Afghan government and coalition forces. Insurgents from the Taliban and other Islamist groups waged asymmetric warfare, fighting with guerrilla warfare in the countryside, suicide attacks against urban targets, and reprisals against perceived Afghan collaborators.

By 2007, large parts of Afghanistan had been retaken by the Taliban. In response, the coalition sent a major influx of troops for counter-insurgency operations, with a "clear and hold" strategy for villages and towns. This influx peaked in 2011, when roughly 140,000 foreign troops were operating under ISAF command across Afghanistan.

The conflict officially ended with the 2021 Taliban offensive, which overthrew the Islamic Republic and re-established the Islamic Emirate. The last American military aircraft departed from Afghanistan on 30 August 2021, marking the end of the protracted US-led military presence in the country.

The war was started by President George W. Bush in response to the 9/11 terror attacks

The war in Afghanistan was started by President George W. Bush in response to the 9/11 terror attacks. The war was part of a broader "Global War on Terror", which aimed to seek out and stop terrorists around the world.

On September 20, 2001, Bush demanded that the Taliban stop harboring members of al-Qaeda and warned that the war on terror would not end until terrorism was eradicated. He announced that the United States had begun military action in Afghanistan on October 7, 2001, targeting al-Qaeda terrorist training camps and Taliban military installations.

The initial phase of the war involved airstrikes and the deployment of special forces, with the first wave of conventional ground forces arriving twelve days later. By November 2001, 1,300 American troops were in Afghanistan, and this number steadily increased as US and Afghan forces toppled the Taliban government and went after Osama bin Laden.

Bush's administration also took steps to deny financing to terrorists and terrorist groups, freezing the assets of entities that funded terrorist activity. The war in Afghanistan was justified as a necessary response to the 9/11 attacks and as part of a broader effort to combat global terrorism.

The war in Afghanistan lasted for 20 years and involved the participation of thousands of US and NATO troops, becoming the longest war in American history.

The Taliban resumed control of Afghanistan as US troops withdrew

The Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan in 2021 came two decades after their ouster by US-led forces. The Taliban's swift offensive came as the US withdrew its remaining troops from Afghanistan as outlined in a 2020 peace agreement with the group.

The Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan was precipitated by the withdrawal of US and NATO troops, and the collapse of the US-backed Afghan government. The Taliban took advantage of the security vacuum left by the departing US and NATO forces, and the disarray within the Afghan government, to swiftly seize control of the country.

The Taliban's resurgence can be attributed to several factors, including the group's ability to exploit the weaknesses of the Afghan government and security forces, the lack of coordination and poor morale among Afghan forces, and the support they received from certain regional actors.

The Taliban's return to power has had significant consequences for Afghanistan and the wider region. The group has imposed a harsh interpretation of Islamic law, restricting women's rights, suppressing free speech, and cracking down on political opposition. The country's economy has also suffered, with mass unemployment, a collapse of the housing market, and increased malnutrition.

The international community, led by the US, has struggled to influence the Taliban's behavior, particularly regarding women's rights and the group's ties to international terrorist organizations. The Taliban's refusal to moderate their policies and their continued association with groups like al-Qaeda have complicated diplomatic efforts and led to sanctions and a pause in foreign aid, further exacerbating the economic crisis in Afghanistan.

The Taliban's rise to power and the subsequent withdrawal of US and NATO forces have raised questions about the future of Afghanistan and the region's stability. The international community is now faced with the challenge of preventing Afghanistan from becoming a safe haven for terrorist groups while also addressing the country's deteriorating humanitarian situation.

Five US presidents have presided over the war

The US military officially launched Operation Enduring Freedom on October 7, 2001, with support from the UK. The war's early phase involved airstrikes on al-Qaeda and Taliban targets, but by November, 1,300 American troops were in the country. Bush sent thousands more troops to Afghanistan in the coming months and years as US and Afghan forces toppled the Taliban government and went after bin Laden. By May 2003, the Pentagon declared major combat in Afghanistan over, and the focus shifted to reconstructing the country and installing a Western-style democratic political system.

However, the Taliban began a resurgence, and by the time Bush left office in 2009, there were more than 30,000 US troops stationed in Afghanistan, and the Taliban was staging a full-blown insurgency.

The next president, Barack Obama, inherited this war and initially deployed tens of thousands more troops to Afghanistan while committing to a withdrawal timetable. By August 2010, US forces in Afghanistan reached 100,000. In May 2011, bin Laden was killed in Pakistan, and shortly afterward, Obama announced plans to begin bringing US troops home, with a goal of handing off security responsibilities to the Afghans by 2014. Obama left office with just under 10,000 troops in the country, passing the decision on what to do next to his successor.

Donald Trump, who took office in 2017, had vowed to bring American troops home from Afghanistan during his campaign. However, making good on this promise proved difficult as the Taliban continued to surge. Trump outsourced troop-level authority to the Pentagon and, in 2018, tasked a seasoned Afghan-American diplomat with leading negotiations with the Taliban meant to bring the war to an end. A deal was struck in February 2020 that set the course for a full American withdrawal in exchange for guarantees from the Taliban to reduce violence and cut ties to terror groups.

However, the Taliban gained strength as US troops began leaving, and the May 2021 deadline for a full withdrawal was passed on to Trump's successor, Joe Biden. Biden had long been disillusioned about the war efforts and, upon taking office, received warnings that withdrawing all US troops could lead to the collapse of Afghanistan's government and a takeover by the Taliban. Nevertheless, he announced that the remaining 2,500 US troops in Afghanistan would come home by September 11, 2021—20 years after the terror attacks that prompted the war.

The timeline for withdrawal accelerated, and on August 15, 2021, the Taliban returned to power in Kabul as Ghani fled the country. The US and its allies began a hurried mission to evacuate citizens and Afghan allies, sending 6,000 US troops back into the country to secure the airport in Kabul and facilitate the airlift. On August 30, 2021, the last US military forces departed Afghanistan, leaving it under Taliban rule.

The war cost the US a trillion dollars and thousands of lives

The war in Afghanistan was America's longest war, lasting 20 years. It was initiated by President George W. Bush in response to the September 11, 2001, terror attacks on the United States. The war cost the US trillions of dollars and thousands of lives.

The US government spent $2.3 trillion on the war, which led to the deaths of 2,324 US military personnel, 3,917 US contractors, and 1,144 allied troops. The war also resulted in the deaths of 70,000 Afghan military and police personnel, 46,319 Afghan civilians, and 53,000 opposition fighters. The full extent of the indirect costs is even greater, considering injuries, illnesses, displacement, war widows and orphans, malnutrition, destruction of infrastructure, and environmental degradation.

The war in Afghanistan also had a significant human cost for the US. Over 7,000 US service members have died in post-9/11 war zones, including Afghanistan, and thousands more have been wounded in combat or have died indirectly from injuries sustained in the war zones. The US military suicide rate has climbed significantly since 2004, with four times as many service members dying by suicide than in combat in the post-9/11 wars. This signals a widespread mental health crisis among veterans.

The war in Afghanistan also had a financial cost for the US. As of 2021, the war had cost the US $1 trillion, or $300 million a day for 20 years. This massive expenditure of resources could have been spent on other priorities, such as addressing the global economic downturn, unemployment, and budget deficits.

The war in Afghanistan also had a political cost for the US. Five presidents, from Bush to Biden, have had to confront the evolving mission in Afghanistan, resulting in tens of thousands of American and Afghan casualties, futile attempts to improve the country's political leadership, and a Taliban that refused to be defeated. The war blurred its purpose and became a war without a clear objective.

In conclusion, the war in Afghanistan cost the US trillions of dollars and thousands of lives. The financial, human, and political costs of the war were immense, and the US will be dealing with the consequences for years to come.

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